


Children of Ashes

by lucyditty



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Anarchy, Discrimination, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-23
Updated: 2015-07-10
Packaged: 2018-04-05 19:41:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4192485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucyditty/pseuds/lucyditty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One hundred years of oppression from The Monarch and the world is oblivious to the ruins. Four years of running have worn them. Six years of waiting, and the restraints are ready to snap. Let the revolution begin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Act I: Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: Only the story belongs solely to me, everything else belongs to its rightful owners  
> BETAS: aclockworkat, FFFG
> 
> This story is Rookie 9 centric, with a heavy focus on Shikamaru, Shino, Sasuke, and Hinata

* * *

 

**Act I: Chapter One**

Their nightmares scorched in fire.

Red leaves floating, charred. Mighty trees blackened and burning.

It was their brothers burning. Sisters burning. It was their fathers and mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers. It was their aunts and uncles, childhood friends and first loves. All in flames, burning in blinding red. The smell of charred flesh and burnt rubber filled the air, leaving only blackened bones and sickening unease. Faces that had once been people they knew, people they loved, people they cherished. Now only half singed faces skewed into dissonant half screams, expressed in strained terror and distorted beyond recognition. The school yard and town center were ablaze, lost in charcoal and smoke, nostalgia melting into a pool of unrecognizable mess. Memories singed in blackened red.

And the screams…echoing…blaring… They pierced like needles into flesh – sharp, cold, and unforgiving – draining and only leaving emptiness. As it drew on, cut deep, leaving scars when it was over; scars that stitched onto the heart, refusing to leave and refusing to be forgotten. Just like the fires. Burned to memory.

* * *

Sasuke woke with a start, clumsy fingers pressed against the sweat sticking to his temples. The bark underneath him scratched and itched as he pulled himself up.  _Sleeping in trees was the worst_ , he thought to himself, but the comfort of cushioned tatami was long forgotten, a softness too far away to feel. He could remember a time when he slept in one, but now sleep was only associated with terror, unease, and vulnerability – something none of them could afford.

A few branches above, a boy sat with one knee pressed against his chest while the other dangled haphazardly. His back, supported by the trunk behind him, was alert and straight. The sound of a single crunched leaf would have gone unnoticed by untrained ears.

"If there were Black Guard soldiers, you'd be dead Uchiha-san." The boy said in a low whisper.

Sasuke suppressed the urge to scoff. There was nothing humorous about that statement.

"Is it time Nara?" He asked curtly.

Twilight had long since passed, the moon wasn't too high in the sky yet. Nara Shikamaru laid his head back and sighed. His shadow, cast by the dim moonlight, disappeared and ran off down the trunk. Teetering on what used to be the boarder of the Water and Wind Empires, the summer air was temperate. It was a night of moving once again.

Swiftly and quietly Sasuke let himself down from the high branch. In a blink, his coal black eyes turned to pools of lusty red. He'd memorized where everyone hid, which trees and what branch. It was never pleasant, having to wake others, but that was the reason for activating his Nin.

He sneered. The lower branches were wider, sturdier, but ultimately more likely to be noticed. Sasuke looked at two girls – an older and a younger – whose eyes were closed blissfully in slumber. One wrapped into the other with protective arms acting as a blanket against the winds and Sasuke stared at them with contempt.

_Nin-ja are supposed to sleep with one eye open._

The moment his foot stepped onto their branch, the older's eyes shot wide. Pupil-less ghost eyes darted in his direction as her arms lifted in a protective stance. The younger jostled awake.

"Calm yourself Hyuuga," he spat, "time to wake everyone up."

The veins around Hyuuga Hinata's eyes were on the verge of bulging, on the verge of activating her Nin, but she ignored the bitterness in his voice and lowered her arms, giving a silent nod of understanding.

"Onee-san?" the younger girl looked up at her sister, sleepy eyes vacant of any emotion but fear.

Hinata smiled at the girl.

"Don't worry Hanabi-chan." Hinata reassured. "We're just moving, again."

Hinata lifted her younger sister onto her back and Hanabi groaned. Hinata winced at the sound.

"Do your joints still hurt?" Hinata asked.

"Quit lagging Hyuuga." Sasuke ordered.

There was no room for argument.

Activating her Nin, the veins beside her eyes bulged. The world turned hollow and translucent. She could clearly see where everyone slept, and the energy roaming through them. Some were already awake and moving, being nudged by an elongated energy source running along the roots and bark of the wood; something that could only be Shikamaru's shadow. Even the spindle like fibers that connected Sasuke's core Nin to his glowing red eyes was completely visible to her.

She jumped to another tree, careful of Hanabi on her back.

The midlevel had two girls laying on opposite sides of the tree. Pink and yellow, long and flowing. The moment Hinata landed, the two girl's lids lifted. Hinata watched as energy began to flow from the pink's core to her arms, ready to strike; but upon seeing that is was only Hinata, she relaxed. The Nin receded back to the core.

"Don't scare us like that Hinata…" the yellow sighed.

"Sorry, Ino-san… Sakura-san." Hinata bowed her head in apology. "We'll be leaving shortly."

"No need to be sorry," the yellow, Yamanaka Ino, said. "How's your sister?"

The pink, Haruno Sakura, came down to the branch Hinata stood on. Putting her hand to Hanabi's forehead, Sakura's face turned askew.

"She's still really warm."

There were a few rustles from the trees behind. Hinata saw that everyone had been awoken and Shikamaru's shadow returned to his side. Hinata lingered for a moment, even when Sakura and Yamanaka Ino left the tree to join the others. Hanabi was limp, lifeless, and she hated it. Her Nin moved sluggishly through her body.

_Nin-ja don't carry the dead back after a battle…_

"Hyuuga-san," Shikamaru called, "due west."

Shaken from her troubling thoughts, she closed her eyes and concentrated for a moment, scanning the perimeter – focusing west as asked. A tingle of energy slithered up from the pit of her belly to the nape of her neck. Warmth traveled into the temples beside her eyes, the veins bulged and grew.

Trees turned to dry, mountainous landscape with sand and gravel sliding, being picked up by the wind. A treacherous path but there was no sign of any human life.

Letting her Nin fade back to her core, there was a slight feeling of fatigue from a portion of energy she had drained. Quickly, she joined the others. She stood at the center while they awaited her report; eyes worn and old, not meant for the youthful faces to whom they belonged to.

"We're safe for eight kilometers." Hinata reported. "The forest ends in about five."

Shikamaru nodded. There was only a second delay before the group dropped down from the trees. They dashed; small and clumsy feet tapped against the forest floor, a few faltering on roots and fallen branches. The click of their heels echoed into the night as they attempted to move quickly and swiftly. Scavenging animals scurried out of their path, frightened by the aura of raw desperation.

They passed like blurs. Sasuke leading, his eyes scanning the path ahead. Every turn and crevasse appeared before him two seconds before appearing for the group. Half a second for every tadpole that spun in his red pond. Like moving through water, his body was sluggish and disoriented with what he saw versus what he did. There were always delays which was why he constantly needed to keep track of the black silhouette zooming ahead.

"How are you holding up, Hyuuga-san?" Shikamaru fell back to Hinata.

The middle of the group was one of the hardest to maneuver through, but as far as tactics go it was also the safest, a barricade of bodies surrounded them. Shikamaru was no fool, he noticed the worried furrow in Hinata's brow and the protective grip she had on Hanabi. The younger girl was awake, but she looked in no condition to function on her own.

"I-I'm fine Nara-san." Hinata gave a wary smile. Even in dire situations she was most polite. "Don't worry about us. Right now we just need to focus on getting into the mountains."

"Don't tire yourself too much, Hyuuga-san."

"Of course Nara-san," Hinata assured.

Though his words were short, the message was delivered. It did little to quell her unease, though. Hinata knew that she and her sister were their greatest assets for survival and they were no good if too weak to even activate their Nin. Hanabi was already suffering. Hinata couldn't afford to drop as well.

She knew this and so was conserving herself. Not accelerating faster to be at the head, being lighter on her feet to extend the moments she was lifted into the air. She wasn't the strongest, but she was trained to control her body. Hyuuga always needed to be in control.

A boy with red fang tattoos carved onto both cheeks approached her. He ran beside a midsized canine and gave her a worried look.

"I can have Akamaru carry Hanabi-chan if you need, Hinata."

Hinata smiled, sincerity in her eyes.

"M-maybe when we get to the mountains," she said earnestly, "Thank you Kiba-kun."

Shikamaru felt the muscles in his legs ache. It hadn't been long since their last encounter with the Black Guard and, despite an unwillingness to accept it, he knew not everyone had been able to recover – including him. They did was little they could with plants found around the forest, but neither time nor resources on their side. Cuts were left open, burns untreated, and fatigue ate away at their stamina. The spread of infection was inevitable, but by this point, they'd accepted the fate of death at any moment. Those who noticed the sickly yellow puss would always offer to stay behind, ready to prolong the effort for the rest to stay alive.

_Nin-ja die in battle, nothing more nothing less._

Sasuke saw Shikamaru's shadow return. The chill of something cold as it passed under Sasuke seconds later was disorienting. Shikamaru reattached his shadow and absorbed the information it had gathered. The tingle as it ran through his feet and up his person was always unnerving but he'd learned to not show it.

"The forest dwindles out in a few kilometers," Shikamaru informed the group. "There is also a good portion of exposed space before the mountains start. We need to minimize the time we spend in that area."

There was no confirmation that any of them heard, but there didn't need to be. It was already common knowledge that they need to reach the mountains as soon as possible.

Akamaru whimpered. Kiba patted his companion's head trying to reassure him. "I smell it, too."

Shikamaru noted Inuzuka Kiba's comment.

"What do you smell Kiba?" Shikamaru demanded rather than asked. If Kiba could smell it, then it was close.

"Nothing that I know of…" Kiba admitted, but there was a feral look in his eyes as his nose scrunched and teeth exposed in a grimace. "But I can tell you it ain't natural."

"Hyuuga-san, status." Shikamaru ordered.

She took a deep breath and focused. The warmth that came from her center rushed up to her eyes and when she opened them the veins bulged. Immediately she saw the open plain that Shikamaru's shadow had discovered and just beyond, the mountainous terrain. Hinata turned her concentration to what was behind them. There seemed to be no one, the area was clear and vacant of anyone but them.

"I'm not seeing anything," she reported.

It wasn't good and Shikamaru was distressed, even if his demeanor and steps were steady. However, the grit in his teeth was something Hinata didn't miss. Sasuke frowned.

"What's the verdict Nara?" Sasuke slowed his pace to be in step with Shikamaru.

Shikamaru was calculating, but decisive direction was needed just as much as well-reasoned ones. His footing faltered for a moment.

"Proceed with caution," He answered. "We have to make it into the mountains."

Trees dwindled and the open field was coming clearer into view. Their steps didn't waver as the forest floor began to disappear. Roots were replaced with grass and the stuffy must of wet leaves cleared. The night was much colder than they had imagined.

"Stay alert Uchiha-san," Shikamaru cautioned.

"No need to tell me what I already know." Sasuke snapped.

Shikamaru only took a glance at the Uchiha. The two never truly got along, but there were more important things to worry about than petty differences. The night was still fresh and safety was still a long ways away from being obtained. Kiba frowned and mentally gave Akamaru a sign of comfort.

Hinata tightened the grip she had on her sister. Everyone else had hardened expressions, eyes darting in all directions, minimizing any signs of weakness or ability to be caught off guard. The end of the forest, the open field seemed to grow before them, making safety feel father and father away. It made them feel vulnerable, too visible in the dim light of a full moon that hung like a lantern hanging over a silhouette of mountains that were still too distant to grasp.

Sasuke saw it first.

Smoke erupted into the air. Clouds of gray and black polluted their vision. There was a smell of acrid wetness all around them, undoubtedly from the cloying vapors surrounding them. Instinctively they all reached to cover their nose and mouth. Poison was too obvious a possibility. Sasuke could feel the Nara's back shift against his, curved in an attack ready stance.

"Keep your Nin activated," Shikamaru said.

Sasuke was too paranoid to retort. His head snapped in all directions.

"Hyuuga!" He hiss through clenched teeth.

Hinata didn't need to be called. Her veins bulged and the world became transparent. She counted the heads of their group and felt slight ease that the number had not lowered. For now, everyone was alive, but there was an all too familiar panic that filled her when the sight of a foreign speck whirled past her jaw. It had entered from her blind spot.

There was no time to report. She threw herself back, turning to shield Hanabi.

"Naruto!" Sasuke yelled.

Too late.

Screams echoed when the explosion erupted. For what he could do, Naruto flung himself into the flames and felt his orange jumpsuit burn away. The heat consumed him, but the prickle of fire tingled on his skin. The force of the explosion pushed him back but at the least Hinata had been spared the large, marring burns that Naruto obtained. The embers of explosions were always too hard to manipulate.

Hanabi stared wide eyed, eyes watering from the heat. Hinata didn't have time to console her.

"Guard soldiers!" She and Sasuke yelled.

Blurs infiltrated the field. The sounds of metal clashing crashed. Sasuke pulled out a kunai and just barely deflected the shuriken aimed for Shikamaru's head.

"Get your head in the game, Nara," Sasuke seethed.

An attacker kicked him in the chest.

Shikamaru ducked a coming punch and swept the feet of the soldier in front of him. It knocked the assailant off his feet but there was a katana ready to slice him from the side. Shikamaru hissed. It grazed his hip as he jumped out of reach. Before he could process anything, there was another waiting to hook his jaw. It knocked him to ground. He quickly rolled just in time to avoid the blade.

Not far off, Sakura dipped low – her calloused hands gripping a soldier by the ankle and swinging him – releasing him to crash into two of his comrades. A quick side step and a twist to avoid a blade to her neck. Tightening her fingers into a ball, she gripped the arm of the soldier and tried to strike. Her fist was met by shuriken to the wrist. She reeled in pain. The blunt force of a knee to her chin sent her stumbling, her feet jumped to avoid an attack. Three men assaulted her, each with a weapon in both hand. One swiped up. Sakura caught the blade, her arm tense and the blood dripping from her grip as the clank of metal sounded behind her.

Ino interfered with her kunai. A wakizashi stunted in its attack, the attacker stumbled. Lunging into the air, Ino swung a leg around and hooking the soldier in the neck. There was a grunt as her victim fell to the ground. A blaring screech escaped her when a shuriken bit into her ankle. Her balance hindered. She struggled to deflect a katana aimed at her stomach. A swerve and raise of her arm, the dull end of the blade hit her shoulder and knocked her over. Someone caught her and lifted her over their head to catapult her body at an enemy soldier. The momentum carried the force in her arm to force a kunai between the eyes of the soldier in her path. Her kunai was quickly retrieved along with the shuriken in his side pouch.

"Thanks Choji." Ino huffed.

There was no time to acknowledge her words of gratitude. He spun and his blade met an opponent. The soldier swung her arms back and jabbed forward. Again, again, again. Akimichi Choji felt the cool touch of metal swipe his cheek, arms, legs. His arm lifted and shifted, catching the assaulter by the hip. The force pushed into his abdomen but he felt no warm sensation enter into his core. No Nin, no energy to absorb. The red gloves should have been the first sign that these were no Black Guards. He couldn't suppress the curses. A kunai stuck into his shoulder.

"Shino, your-!" Kiba yelled.

Aburame Shino grabbed an attacker's arm and swept them from under their knees while he sliced a clean cut through the jugular. With a furious scream, another assailant rushed in and aimed a fist to the side of Shino's face. Shino toppled back, caught by small black bugs. They dispersed when a foot came crashing into his stomach and a blade swung to mar his side. Shino flung an arm out to grab onto something. He ignored the squish of something sticky and oozing when he pulled himself up. Pivoting on one foot, he kick one side of the soldier's face and then turned to attempt to kick another. Before his foot could make contact a hand chopped at the back of his neck and his vision – even under the tinted glass – blurred.

Kiba barred his teeth in a feral growl and went rushing to his friend's aid. Akamaru barked and pounced onto a soldier. In a last attempt in life, the soldier swung the nearest object in reach – a rock. Whimpers as a rib crushed. Akamaru retreated off the soldier in pain. Kiba turned, furry eyed, and clawed the attacker. He ducked. A katana swung over his head and Akamaru bit the red gloved soldier. Another lunged at Kiba who jumped and avoided the blow. Airborne, he kicked his opponent with the back of his heel and sent them flying into one of their own. Kiba only barely heard Akamaru's bark of warning before they were both struck to the ground.

At the center of all the chaos, Hinata bent back just as a shuriken flew over her. Her legs lifted and she landed a clip onto one attackers' head. He stumbled back and she tried to run. The veins at the sides of her eyes made the battle field all too clear. She could already see the bodies laid about, their limbs akimbo, bent in unnatural positions, mid strikes and failed attacks. Her heart pounded against her chest as she could clearly see that there were more familiar faces than strangers lying on the floor of the battle field. Hanabi yelped. Hinata ducked. Her body turned in a circle and she saw the glint of a blade follow her movements. A few more attackers lined her sides, surrounding her. Three of them attacked at once and she couldn't dodge them all.

The sting of a tanto clipping her arm made her hiss, but she didn't let go of Hanabi who clung desperately to her sister's back. Hinata lifted an arm and redirected a kick to her face. The edge of a wakizashi came as a surprise when her senses failed to notice another assailant behind her. Hanabi gasped when Hinata fell onto her side to avoid the attack and another arm came around to slice her throat. The blade came too close to her head when it dropped. Sasuke had come down and stabbed his kunai into the back of the soldier's hand.

He forced her up.

"There are too many…" He grunted.

He was always three short steps ahead of others, but with so many swarming soldiers, the possibilities of the next attack for his life became too great. In the end he had deactivated his Nin. Hinata held out a limp hand and firmly pushed onto the neck of a soldier rendering her unconscious.

Her vision was waning as time went on and the more she exerted herself. The two Nin-ja swerved around each other and allowed a soldier to fall between the gaps they'd created.

"The mountains." She hissed. "We have to-…"

A blade appeared above her head. She turned and remained agile on her feet. A hand reached out and pulled Hanabi from her back. Hinata let out a furious gasp and kicked the owner of the hand. He blocked and twisted her ankle. Her body flipped against any will she had and it took all the effort she could muster to roll out of the way of a thrown shuriken. Only she was met with a foot to her chest.

Sasuke blocked an attack aimed for his abdomen but got hooked in the jaw. Stumbling, his back hit something hard, but it wasn't a rock or the trunk of a tree. It shifted and he turned to kick whoever it was off his feet. Shikamaru jumped over the attack.

"Watch it, Uchiha." Shikamaru snapped. "Duck."

Sasuke complied. A foot came swinging over him as Shikamaru's back bent to avoid the incoming blow. The foot collided with another soldier's shuriken and the assailant wailed in pain.

"We need to get to the mountains." Shikamaru commanded.

His shadow went flying from under him.

"Run!"

If the command wasn't heard, it was seen. The ones who were still capable of standing tried to fight a clear path toward the mountain range. Guard soldiers closed in on them, weapons out. Hinata watched as one attempted to stab Hanabi in the head. Even in her state, Hanabi was a fighter and rolled out of the way. With aching joints she picked herself off the ground a held an unstable, effortful stance. Her attacker lunged and she maneuvered herself to duck and chopped his side. It was messy and weak, doing little damage. But the blade dropped.

Hinata rushed in, her sister collapsing into her arms. She kicked a soldier and ran. Hanabi was in tow, tiny body jostling about in her sister's arms. Spinning on her feet, she dodged a few well aimed punches to her neck and sides. A blade comes close to her head as she dipped out of the way. The assailant continued to jab at her, bodies swirling. He lunged, she spun. She bolted. No one needed her Nin to know that there were Guard soldiers chasing to attack them.

The muscles in their legs burned. Just as the blade of a kunai cut Shino's arm. His teeth grit and a hand reached to pull him off course. The body was easily thrown to the side with a blinding force as Sakura flung him over her back. In a quick step she fell into step with Shino.

A jump and swipe, Choji managed to escape a few Guard soldiers. His brow was dirtied from sweat and blood but with a last effort he ran toward the mountains. Doing what he could, Shikamaru tried his best to use his shadow to lead through the smoke and to safety. Sasuke choked past the sting of a lesion on his side and activated his Nin. Eyes bloody red, he ignored the urge to calculate the rate of survival, only trying to focus on when the smoke would end.

Akamaru and Kiba couldn't suppress the tensed sigh when a large, rocky mountainside appeared in view. As the smoke began to thin, salvation was finally in sight. Their feet didn't slow as grass turned to ruble, and flat plain transformed into mountainous inclines. The soles of their feet burned through the rubber of their shoes when the mouth of the mountain pass opened.

The sound was heard before the explosion.

Light and fire. The mountain was coming down on them. The rumble of boulders as they plundered a path to the unfortunate people below. It knocked some of them to the ground. But with one last push, one last breath, one last burst of energy, they chanced the rocks plummeting onto them. Their weakened forms bounced between boulders. A foot misplaced and a tumble down the incline. A piercing scream as someone was hit.

They didn't stop. Even as the yells and screams echoed behind them and the mouth of the mountain pass crumbled in a pile of smoke and boulder, their feet struggled to continue running. Strains in their muscles were hardly noticed and only resulted in staggered steps. The terrain was something they were not accustomed to. A long range of towering and intimidating rows of stone, cut so jagged and barren of any life that the dry dust beneath their feet kicked up in small clouds of dull, powdered rock. But the only thing they focused on was the overly familiar sound of fabric rubbing and feet pattering on ground. As they ran their vision focused on nothing but the narrow pathway in front. With Sasuke in front, and Shikamaru close behind, everyone struggled to continue their pace.

Their feet hurt. Their legs hurt. Their arms hurt. Their lungs hurt. Their necks hurt from countless nights spent sleeping in trees and lying on rocks. Their heads hurt from blows in battle. Their eyes stung with stifled tears and sleepless nights.

But they continued to run.

Not looking back, they ran till the path opened and their options diverged. Still encased by tall, uneven landscape, they were at a loss. Breaths raging and eyes darting, their hands still hovering over what little weaponry they had left.

Hinata tried her best to concentrate. Short of breath and energy low, she closed her eyes. Shikamaru waited for the bulges beside her eyes to recede before asking whether the Guard had finally stopped perusing. White eyes opened and a timid nod signaled their safety. Her knees almost collapsed beneath her as Kiba came up to support her, carefully pulling a half dazed Hanabi from her back. For a moment, they could finally rest.

"We have to find an alcove somewhere," Shikamaru instructed, his voice low and exhausted. "The sandstorms in this area are deadly and unpredictable."

He made no effort to stand correctly; the battered ribs wouldn't let him. Heaving a ragged breath, he shuddered at the pain. Like everyone else, the bruises were beginning to form. They didn't have time to figure out how to nurse their wounds, yet their feet were reluctant to move. The light of the moon held itself over them, glowing and giving little shadows to disguise the lifeless terrain around them. The sounds of falling pebbles filled their silence.

"Red Guard soldiers," Naruto scoffed, "what an insult. The Queen didn't even have the guts to send the Black Guard. "

He patted off the dust from what was left of his charred jumpsuit.

"Had they been Black Guard we'd all be dead, stupid." Sakura chastised. Ino, who had an arm slung over her friend, hissed. Her right Achilles had been sliced.

"We almost died just  _then_!" Naruto reminded her, his arms comically waving in the air. "It's embarrassing knowing we had our asses handed to us by some non-Nin soldiers."

"Naruto," Ino snapped, "people did die. You're saying this bullshit and just now-…"

"That's why I'm pissed."

Naruto balled his fists. Eyes glowering down, a feral sound resonated in the back of his throat. His teeth clenched and no one said a word as a flash of sadness passed through their eyes. For a second, they all panted to catch their breaths and thought of the lives lost. There were no incents to burn or offerings to give to the deceased. There were only thoughts to honor them in their dreams.

_Nin-ja do not mourn for their losses._

But they were only thirteen, twelve, seven…

Still children, and still so young.

So when their tears began to well, in a cramped and hidden alcove on the side of a mountain, no one stopped them from falling.

It had been four years since the great Empire of Fire had fallen, and all that was left were ten measly, little children.


	2. Act I: Chapter Two

**Act I: Chapter Two**

 

Konohagakure had situated itself on the edge of the Empire of Fire. Surrounded by great forestry and hilled terrain it had also been known as the village hidden in the leaves. A village built on the ashes of those it had concurred. Once one of the five great Nin-ja villages, it had seen the rise and fall of many Lords and mourned the losses of generations of Nin-ja.

Nin-ja. People born with extraordinary abilities. Abilities that had arisen out of necessity, out of need, out of a will for survival. Their children learned how to survive, or face death before knowing anything else.

But just as society must evolve, so did Nin-ja. Friendships. Love. Hate. Bonds – true or false – they learned to experience it all in the interwoven web of a world created so that one could get the upper hand of another. Because if their want to live was strong enough, yesterday’s enemy would become today’s friend. The bridges built and burned through years of training, murder, lies, and deceit had created a network where Lords functioned over land that they desired to obtain or struggled to keep.

Konohagakure. A village built from the ashes of those it had concurred. How fitting, that the empire that had begun in fire, would also end in fire.  

 

* * *

 

 

There was a knock on his door.

“What do you want, Nara?”

Whoever it was hadn’t barged in so it couldn’t have been Naruto. Whoever it was also said nothing, waiting for Sasuke’s approval first, ruling out of the more talkative of their group. But the knock had been a good, strong, and steady one, completely sure of its intentions. Which left only two people, it was a fifty-fifty shot.

“Dinner is ready,” came the deep voice of Aburame Shino.

His shadow from underneath the door disappeared to the right, leaving Sasuke to himself once more. The lone candle in the center of the room casted dull light onto his face. The rubble and dirt could still be felt under the thin tatami mat.

“Che…”

Everyone was either gathered on the floor with their steaming bowls of mush or serving themselves a steaming bowl of mush when Sasuke walked into the largest cavern within the mountain. At first, no one took notice to his presence. While everyone usually was quiet during meals, there was always something else to be preoccupied with. Shikamaru had his musings, Naruto had his goofy advances for Sakura, Sakura had Ino and her avoidances of Naruto’s advances. Shino had his bugs, Kiba had his dog, and Choji rarely talk when eating food – if it could even be called as such. Hinata had her sister. He balled his fists.

“Sasuke!” Naruto peered up from his bowl and waved a hand.  His large smile plastered on like the class clown Sasuke had always thought of him as, but never the less he grabbed a lone bowl by the fire pit and spooned himself some of the mush. Sitting by Naruto’s side, the blonde Nin-ja nudged his friend playfully.

Looking at the brown and black goop, Sasuke questioned whether or not he was really hungry. Though millions of times better than the leaves, bark, and ration bars they’d become accustomed to living off of for five years, at least there were periods every now and then when they were able to steal some loaves of bread or a slaughtered chicken or two. Traditional Sky cooking or not, the grey-brown – and on occasion green-brown – mush was a sign of their foreboding situation.

Shikamaru eyed Sasuke from across the fire pit. He said nothing but just stared till it did him no more good. Blowing on the bowl in his hands, Shikamaru shifted his focus to the three figures sitting beside him. An older boy and girl and their younger brother whose cyan eyes were hazed and surrounded in black from sleepless nights.

Their encounter with the sand siblings had been a stroke of chance. Having spent days in the maze that was the mountain pass surrounding what had once been the Empire of Wind, they were running low on food and stamina. The insistent sandstorms that slowly gnawed away their skin had warn them down. There was almost nothing to be seen for kilometers, according to Hinata. Nothing but barren mountain rocks and dying weeds. But when she had seen that figure that glided across the rigid landscape like the wind that tumbled rocks, there had been hope. While normally they all would have run in the opposite direction, this figure had pouches of food and water. Especially the water.   

Though there was no signature or detection of Nin within the figure, it was soon made clear that who they began pursuing was skilled. Kiba and Akamaru smelled the explosives before anyone else saw them drawn. Thankfully Naruto had decided to take the foreground and did what he could to manipulate the flames. It didn’t take much for a group of nine to corner one, but the figure’s stamina was still something to be admired. The bruise on Shikamaru’s cheek was no longer tender, but while most of the blue-black discoloration had faded his skin was still left with an unsightly yellow circle just under his left eye. But it had been good that they’d apprehended Temari, the eldest, rather than Kankuro, the middle. He would have tried to poison them without a doubt.

The sand siblings were born into a family who followed The Monarch and their ranks for generations. Little had they known about their connection to a once great clan of sand manipulators, and the blood had somehow appeared in the youngest with haunted eyes. The youngest was the reason they were able to survive the sand storms that plagued those mountains, they called him Gaara the Sand Demon. Even with a seal upon his forehead it wasn’t hard to imagine how he killed a group of one hundred Black Guard soldiers.

The caution in which Shikamaru noticed Kankuro and Temari handled their younger brother, it was easy to tell that they still had no clue how to handle a Nin-ja. Kankuro’s side glances every time they would pass told Shikamaru that he trusted none of them, even after a month of hiding. But Shikamaru only pushed such a problem to the corners of his mind. It wasn’t as if he expected civilians to understand.

“You have to eat Hanabi-chan,” Hinata tried probing her sister. Even if the fever passed, the aching joints and constant fatigue continued. “Come now, Hanabi-chan, please…”

It took time, but Hanabi always ate eventually. Not because she was hungry but because of Hinata’s persistence. Sasuke only gave an indiscrete scoff. Hinata looked up and away from Hanabi for a moment, her eyes dejected.

“You okay, Sasuke?” Naruto looked to his friend.

Sasuke just frowned and continued eating his mush. Sakura gave him a worried look but eventually went back to face Ino. And among the dim light of a fire pit, there was more silence again. Sometimes someone would sniff or blow at their bowls, but otherwise there was nothing in particular of interest to talk about. Not that Shikamaru, Sasuke, or Shino really minded. But for characters like Naruto, Kiba, and Ino, it made them antsy.

So during clean up, there was always an effort to make their situation livelier. A badly timed joke or gag here and there. It usually made Hinata laugh and Sakura roll her eyes. But washing the bowls and pot was usually a group effort; as well as being one of the only times that the sand siblings would willingly interact with the other Nin-ja.

“Shit,” Kankuro hissed.

“What?” Temari looked to her brother, a grimace on her face.

“We’re out of clean water.”

He tossed a large jug in his sister’s direction, it was only one of many. But they all recognized the red one as the last.

“Out?” Temari said in disbelief. “But we just bought supplies.”

“Well, do we have any more stones?”

“I just said, we just bought supplies.” Temari repeated her words slower and with more tension.

Kankuro narrowed his eyes.

“Didn’t you and the Hyuuga go out several times to look for more?”

“We found four copper stones. What’s that going to get us? One jug?” Temari tossed the rag she’d been using. “Besides, we can’t just casually go back into the village even if different people go in. They’ll suspect something. Two groups of nomads in a month wearing the same cloaks?”

“We can’t just wait out another month.”

“And we can’t just be going in either.” Temari countered.

“How about we try a different village?” Ino suggested, unsure if her input was welcome.

“No good, the next village is a two day trip.” Temari pinched the bridge of her nose.

“This wouldn’t be a problem if it were still just the three of us.”

“Kankuro.” His sister chastised.

The two siblings glared at each other. The Nin-ja still washing their bowls had their heads low, guilt heavy on their chest.

“Then the answer is obvious isn’t it?”

Everyone turned at the deep voice of Aburame Shino.

“And what’s that bug boy?” Kankuro snapped.

A hand come from his pocket to readjust the shades on his nose.

“We’ll have to steal what we need for now.” He said matter-of-factly. Kankuro clenched his teeth. “Besides, it isn’t as though it’s any different from how you have been gathering your supplies. Those stones were not earned through honest work.”

“Listen here bug boy, that’s entirely different.” Kankuro stalked over to Shino, chest puffed high. Half a head taller than the young Nin-ja, Shino did not cower.

“If what you are worried about is being caught, you should feel at ease. Stealth is in a Nin-ja’s specialty.”

Kankuro’s traditional Sky markings contorted in a glower. He took a step back.

“I’m sure it is…” he spat.

 

* * *

 

 

He was relieved to get out of the mountains. While Temari had been able to get Gaara to calm down enough to concentrate on calming the sandstorm when they left, it only riled back up just as they reached the borders. It was fine enough, the heavy cloaks and face masks shielded them well enough to make the rest of the trek safely. Just a few raw foreheads and bloodshot eyes.  

Scaling down the mountainside almost blew their hoods right off. Cool night air whipped past them, a chilling yet exhilarating feeling that ran up their arms and legs. Ino was clumsy with her landings, but physicality was not her major skill set and the torn Achilles did not help her lack of coordination.

The village lights were dim but within traveling distance. Like a soft beacon in the darkness, they walked toward it. Shikamaru made a side glance to Ino who nodded and pulled her hood further over the yellow of her locks. Shino readjusted his opaque glasses and trudged forward. Shikamaru assumed that it meant it was safe to proceed, the small bugs were being planted in all corners of the little village ahead.

As they came closer, their paces became more cautious. They did not slow, but each movement was calculated. Fast but steady. And as the lights glowed brighter and brighter, Shino fell further behind and Shikamaru took the front. Ino followed close behind as they pressed themselves close to hard stone walls.

Sounds of music and shouting were heard. A blast and eruption of fireworks into the air, Ino bit her lip to keep from jumping. Her muscles tensed. Shikamaru paused and waited, his breath being held, for a couple to pass through the light. The blue gloves and Monarch insignia on his military cap said enough about the man. Carefully, Shikamaru stuck a single foot out and watched as his shadow grew in the luminance. It shot out and caught the man by the toe of his shoe. Just barely in time. Shikamaru felt the tense pull as the man was startled by the sudden inability to lift his right foot from the ground. The Blue Guard soldier was about to mumble a curse.

Ino struggled to make the target with her hands. Her body dropped.

“Is something wrong?” the woman asked in her shrill voice.

Shikamaru let his hold on the man’s body go. A single drop of sweat fell from his temple.

“Nothing,” the man’s gruff voice said. “Thought I just saw something you might like.”

With big hands that were much too thick for Ino’s liking, she lifted them to give Shikamaru and Shino a sign of her presence. From the shadows, Shino and Shikamaru could only watch as her mind disappeared into the crowd with another man’s body. They had to hide Ino’s body fast and somehow trail behind the borrowed body without being noticed. Leaving her body unguarded was not ideal, but there was only so much a three man squad could do.

Four would always be ideal, pairing off was always ideal. But Nin-ja never traveled in teams of four. It was superstition based on generations of fictitious stories, but why tempt fate?

Shino and Shikamaru were silent as they trailed the rooftops, footsteps lightly pattering. Shikamaru frowned. He knew Ino would be livid once she found out that all they could do was stuff her body under a pile of discarded rubbish.

They caught sight of the body almost dropping a cup of sake being forced into its blue gloved hands. Ino had never tasted alcohol before and fumbled as she brought the cup closer to the body’s lips, her hesitance was suspicious and the group of Blue Guard soldiers that had welcomed her now stared at the body with furrowed brows. Even more so when she coughed at the stinging burn that lingered.

“Eh?” The man that had shoved the glass in her hands in the first place leaned across the table. “This is the first time I’ve seen you choke on sake, you usually suck six bottles whole on your own.”

“I guess I’m not in a drinking mood tonight.”

“Ha!” the man laughed, a jovial grin played on his lips. “Now there are some words that I’d never thought you’d say.”

Ino had to remember that the gruff and deep laugh was coming from the body she was using. She felt heavy and weighted. With aid of the borrowed body, her vision carefully shifted around the sight of the side road bar she had wandered to. The streets were crowded as a mix of Blue and Purple Guard soldiers loosened their military coats. The music from some restaurant was playing a bouncing beat mixed with sounds of instruments Ino was not accustomed to hearing. She tapped the foot of her borrowed body, to at least give allusion that she was having a good time.

“I didn’t know you liked music,” the man said.

Ino ceased her tapping.

“Ah...” she hesitated, “I listen when I can.”

The man seemed to take such a rushed answer.

“Kind of pisses me off.”

“What does?”

“The Purple Guard!” The man swallowed the last of his alcohol and slammed it down. He demanded more. “They’re only one rank higher and the people throw a party for them like they’re The Queen themselves. Pisses me off.”

Ino was a little mortified by the rate in which her “companion” took in his alcohol.

“Hey.” The man patted the body on the chest, a flush already showing on his face. “Remember when we were assigned to station here?”

Ino wasn’t sure whether or not to respond, her large fist gripped at the bar.

“Hah! Of course you don’t, you were drunk as hell!” The man continued. Ino inwardly sighed at her luck. “But we had to pay for our drinks then. The Purple Guard? Nope. Fuckers could just take this shitty village’s whole water supply and they’d celebrate them like fuckin’ heroes.”

The man let out a long, chortling laugh. The bartender eyed him warily but said nothing.

“Why would they?”

The man ordered another drink.

“Cause they’re on importing duty. Bastards could drink half of it on the way here and no one would say nothin’.”

Ino blinked and searched the crowd for passing Purple Guard. There were few and far between as they danced lazily with the local girls and greeted each other at the side bars.

“Yeah, maybe we should train for the Purple Guard,” Ino tried to sound joking. But the vocal chords were too gruff, too rough and strained from shouting that she couldn’t control them properly. In a husky whisper she added, “Or maybe develop some Nin and join The Queen’s Black Guard.”

She glanced at her “companion” as he looked too amused. The body raised a brow as the man burst into laughter.

“Never knew you to believe in myths, the Black Guard? The rumors about that are ridiculous. Nin-ja, yah know.  Let one in and society goes to hell like that sand demon thing last spring?” The man howled. “Sometimes I wonder how this world functioned with so many of ‘em.”

“Yeah… I wonder…” Ino tried to withhold the urge to slam her fist right into the man’s face. Her grip on the bar constricted tighter.

“Hey, liven up!” The man shouted. “Maybe you do need something to drink.”

Ino inwardly grimaced.

“I’m fine.”

From the corner of the body’s eye, Ino saw a familiar black bug fly past her. She mentally shuttered but pushed herself from the bar.

“Where you goin’?” The man asked.

“Taking a piss.” She tried to say as crudely as she could. To her ears, the words sounded foreign and awkward, but it was enough for the man to shrug and go back to his drink.

She followed the bug through the crowd and into a back alley. It disappeared into the shadows.

“What’d you find out?” She heard Shikamaru’s voice.

“The Blue Guard are bitter drunks.” The baritone of the body said.

“Need I remind you what the mission is?” Shino’s voice sounded.

Ino mentally rolled her eyes. She always hated being in a squad with those who lacked a sense of humor.

“The Purple Guard import water from village to village.” She reported. “This party is in celebration of their arrival so I’m assuming that there should still be cartons of water somewhere being unloaded or stored.”

“Thought so,” Shikamaru said. “Shino’s bugs found a few oxen and a cart loaded with unopened crates. I think that might be it.”

The body nodded.

“The festivities give a good cover,” Shino added. “We can steal while all the soldiers are distracted and drunk.”

“Alright.” Ino sighed. She was slowly getting used to the weight of the body she carried. It was a good disguise, but not good for actions required for fast paced maneuvering. She would have to switch back. Lifting the body’s head, she peered into the darkness, hoping to catch a glimpse of her two silent squad mates. “So where’s my body?”

Neither said anything.

 

* * *

 

 

The silence wasn’t bothersome. Silence was never bothersome. What was bothersome was the reason for silence. It always had to be completely silent for Gaara, whose eyes were wide and shaking. It was a state of pseudo-calm. From the tremble in his hands to the uneven inhales of his breaths, Gaara was anything but calm. But it was the only way to stop the insistent sandstorm that raged outside, creating a wall between the outside world and the cavernous sanctuary the sand siblings had stumbled upon.  

And it peeved Sasuke even more that he was left stuck in it.

“They should have made it to the border by now,” Kankuro broke the silence. “You did good Gaara.”

The praise was half hearted, but it made the wide eyed boy elated. At least, as elated as he could look with his manic eyes, his lip twitched upwards.

“Ne, Sasuke, keep staring and you’re going to burn a hole in something.” Naruto had been holding his breath till then. Staying still had been ingrained in his as a training Nin-ja, but being quiet was not in his nature.

“Eh, don’t bother with him Naruto,” Kiba called from across the room. “He’s just throwing a tantrum because he was barred from the mission.”

Sasuke ignored him and stood.

“Oh, I see, I see!” Naruto jumped from his spot on the floor and patted Sasuke on the back. “It’s okay Sasuke.”

“I hardly call bartering for supplies a mission.” Sasuke hissed.

The scoff from Kankuro’s direction was missed by no one in the room.

“Correction, _buying_ supplies…” His voice had an edge, like the kunai he kept in his right pocket. He turned to Kankuro.

“E-eh, Sasuke…” Naruto said warily.

“Because _non_ -Nin don’t barter.” Sasuke took a step closer to Kankuro. “Because _non_ -Nin don’t steal.”

“Oi, watch it Uchiha!” Kiba growled as Sasuke almost stepped on Akamaru’s tail.

But Sasuke did not stop his advancements towards the older boy. He had the build of an Uchiha and the stony stride of one. His steps were firm and unpolished. Kankuro glared and sneered.

“Oh, did I hit a nerve? Calling you _non_ -Nin,” Sasuke continued with a malicious smirk. “You prefer civilians? _People?_ And yet you think Nin-ja are just what…?”

“You have a big mouth, boy.” Kankuro furrowed his brow.

Sasuke gave a low chuckle.

“Mistakes.” In a blink his coal black eyes flared red. “Very dangerous mistakes.”

He had predicted Kankuro’s balled fist to come up and punch him. He had predicted Sakura’s hand to come up and push him aggressively away. He had predicted Naruto to come up and put distance between him and Kankuro. He had been prepared, two seconds ahead, to dodge them all. He had not predicted, however, the burning sensation that filled the back of his neck as his Nin supply was violently cut from his eyes.

Sasuke did not scream, but the prolong grunt and choked cough strained his throat. He reached back and gripped the part of his neck that stung.

“H-Hinata-chan…” Sakura said from her crouched position on the ground.

Hinata stood in the willowy stance of a Hyuuga, veins bulging. From the side, she had activated her Nin, her white eyes. She had seen how dangerously Sasuke’s Nin circulated at his core and trailed its way up to his eyes. His pacing towards Kankuro, the lofty breath in his words, she had gently placed Hanabi against Akamaru’s soft coat. Sasuke turned and looked at Hinata with rage. She shied away.

“Stay out of his, Hyuuga.” Sasuke seethed.

“Hey, calm down, Uchiha.” Kiba growled.

“Sticking up for the little princess, Inuzuka?” Sasuke mocked. “Of course the Hyuuga princess gets special treatment, she always does.”

“Oi, Sasuke,” Naruto’s voice was serious now.

“Shut it Naruto,” Sasuke snapped.

“Hey, bastard, what’s got you so twisted?” Naruto balked.

“I said to shut it, Naruto,” Sasuke sneered.

“Honestly, Uchiha,” Kiba barked, “do you get some kind of sadistic pleasure always being pissed at people?”

“Kiba-kun,” Hinata said putting a hand on her friend’s arm. “It’s alright.”

“Hinata…” Kiba looked back at her. “No, it’s not ‘alright’. I’m sick and tired of this guy always acting like he’s got something up his ass.”

Hinata winced at Kiba’s use of vulgar language. Sasuke scoffed.

“Inuzuka dog.”

Kiba snapped his attention to Sasuke.

“What was that, Uchiha?” Kiba raised his voice.  

Sasuke gave a wicked grin.

“The Inuzuka are dogs,” Sasuke mocked.

Kiba’s eyes widened, but they immediately lowered again and he put his hands into the pockets of his furred jacket. His lips spread wide as he gave a feral smile.

“Ah, you’re really starting to piss me off,” Kiba drawled. In a moment, he was crouching, one hand firmly placed on the ground with the other stretched to the side – nails long and wild. Inuzuka kept low and steady. “You’re all talk, Uchiha.”

“Kiba-kun!” Hinata yelped.

Sasuke followed and retracted into a basic fighting stance.

“What are you going to do without your Sharingan?” Kiba taunted.

“I could still beat you with one hand,” Sasuke retorted.

“Cocky, bastard.”

Kiba burst into the air. Sasuke followed and leapt forward. Fists drawn back, they were on a full force path to attack each other.

“Please, stop!” Hinata shouted.

There was a collision and Gaara’s eyes widened at the sound. Outside, the storm grew and raged heavier. Inside, amongst the chaos, Choji had finally sprung into the fray and held a seething Kiba by the shoulders, jagged claws dug into his stomach. The force of the punch hadn’t hurt so much but the feeling of energy as it transferred from one body to another always made Choji’s bones shiver. Behind him, Sasuke stood, struggling under the restraints that were Sakura’s arms.

“Would you all quit it,” Temari said, “you’re agitating Gaara.”

“Bud out.”

Temari narrowed her eyes. It took another moment, but eventually the two boys were let go. Both peeved that their pent frustration towards each other had been stifled.

“W-we shouldn’t fight…” Hinata stammered. “N-not with e-each other.”

“Oh?” Sasuke tilted his head, acting as though he didn’t feel the tightness in his neck. His words were mocking and lacking any semblance of respect. They bit like venom. “Am I offending the princess? We shouldn’t fight? If the lords of Konoha could hear you now.”

“But there _is_ no more Konohagakure.” Hinata retaliated. Her voice meek, hands shaking. But the words struck. “W-we only have each other…we shouldn’t f-fight…”

They were silent. A weight had dropped and no one could move. The realization was old, five years old; they had been processed and had all of the emotions that came with it buried deep in their hearts. But it had only scabbed, the scar never forming. And the scab had opened, had been exposed, fresh and burning. Sasuke balled his fist and grimaced, his head turned away. Even Hanabi had sad eyes from her complacent position against Akamaru’s fur.

Kankuro and Temari eyed each other, awkward in the scheme of things.

“H-hey,” Sakura’s voice was shaky as it broke the silence. “I think we’re all just tired and a little restless from being in this stuffy room for so long. When Ino and them get back we can all wash up and get to bed. Maybe we’ll do a little training tomorrow.”

Sakura reached up and hesitantly placed a hand on Sasuke’s shoulder.

“Che…”

Sasuke forcefully pulled himself out of reach. Sakura clenched her hand and bit her lip, trying her best to hide the dejected look in her eyes.  

“Sasuke…” Naruto gave a disapproving look.

“We’re sparring, dobe,” Sasuke said as he passed.

Naruto looked between Sasuke and the rest of the people in the room. Kankuro and Temari bonded together to calm their brother down. Kiba stood, trying to get his breathing and Nin under control. Choji stood relatively impassive while Hinata had her back turned to them. Sakura’s eyes were dry, she didn’t cry about such trivial stuff anymore. Sasuke wasn’t slowing his pace.

“Oi, wait up, bastard!” Naruto called.

And the room was left back in silence.

 

* * *

 

 

There was a knock on Temari’s door. The girl moved sluggishly to open it, not entirely wanting any visitors at such a late hour. Sakura stood with her bubbling smile and pinkish hair.

“We put all the supplies away and took inventory,” she reported.

Temari raised a brow. The girl had gone out of her way to tell her that? It was a polite gesture, but not customary. In fact, it was the exact opposite of customary. For the one month they had been living together, it was usual that the Nin-ja kids and the sand siblings do their best to ignore and avoid direct contact unless it was absolutely necessary. Sakura was one of the less obnoxious ones, Temari thought, but she still sensed ulterior motives for the visit. Sakura knew she wasn’t fooling anyone. The smile fell and Sakura sighed.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier tonight,” the girl said in all earnestness. “Inuzuka-kun and Sasuke-kun got… out of hand.”

Temari kept her brow raised. But she wasn’t so much in the mood to question anything.

“It’s fine,” the older girl said, exhausted. “Just know that I have little patience for hormonal pre-teens. Keeping my own brothers alive is headache enough.”

Sakura retracted at the words.

“Of course,” she conceded. Holding her tongue and keeping her head up, Sakura nodded and waved a goodbye. “Well, goodnight.”

Temari said nothing and just watched the girl go. When Sakura’s shadow escaped with the dim lights of the torches lighting the tunnels, Temari sighed and rubbed her temple. Ready to recede back into her room, she hardly noticed the other presence that approached her.

“You know, it is more than just teenage hormones.”

Temari started at the voice. Turning, she was surprised to see the dark and shrouded Nin-ja. He was the tallest among the pack of Nin-ja, about as tall as Kankuro if she had to guess. Opaque glasses and a jacket that obscured the lower half of his face, his name escaped her.

“How long have you-…?”

“I just arrived.”

She eyed him up and down.

“How’d you-…?”

“Little information escapes me.”

He readjusted his glasses. If Temari could guess, the boy wasn’t even looking at her. His eyes were fixated into the endless dark of the tunnel ahead. Dim torches lining the walls every so often. Temari wasn’t sure what it was, but his presence made her uneasy.

“What do you want?” She demanded.

He didn’t answer right away.

“It is obvious you do not trust Nin-ja.” He stated bluntly. “Living for years in a society that nourished the ideals of The Monarch, dare I say you and your brother resent us?”

Temari disliked his tone of his voice. Deep and patronizing. He was young, she knew, younger than her. Yet he spoke with such certainty like he had lived a thousand times herself.

“Shouldn’t you be going to-…?”

“But the fact of the reality of your situation is,” he interrupted her with no consideration, “the very kind of people you despise is the very blood you are obligated to protect.”

She reeled. He let his words settle, waiting a moment before continuing.

“Regardless of what institutions of The Monarch have taught you, I can clarify that Nin-ja are a more complex and layered society than you were lead to believe. Even if we only lived in the lives of our clans for no more than eight years, the little quarrel you witnessed between Kiba and Uchiha-san was only a demonstration of how clan politics have influenced even our generation.”

Temari looked the boy up and down again. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, and even harder to believe he was of an age of thirteen. Even the obnoxiously passive one with spiked hair and eyes that wandered too much had traces of boy-ness to him that Temari could recognize. It made her nervous, it reminded her too much of Gaara. A boy stripped of his innocence too early.

“Generally, Nin-ja usually come from named or no-named families,” he told her, eyes still facing ahead. “Of course those are not the official terms, just what we have come to call them. No named Nin abilities are like those of Haruno-san’s strength; generic, simple, and basic abilities that are not specific to one particular clan or set of families.”

Temari was growing antsy watching how stationary the boy remained throughout his explanations.

“And the named are supposed to be the opposite?” She asked.

“One can tell the abilities of the Nin-ja purely based on their family name.” He said. Voice almost triumphant, as though thinking he had the upper hand piquing her interest. “Families that turned into societies all in their own; some have history from so long ago only legends surround their beginnings. And while all Nin abilities are inherited by blood, named Nin-ja obtain abilities that have been so refined and specified, with specific, unquestionable abilities and fighting styles tailored specifically to utilize these abilities.”

He readjusted his glasses.

“As far as I am aware, the Uchiha’s Sharingan and Hyuuga’s Byakugan are among the most famed of the named Nin abilities.”

Temari did her best to take in all that he was telling her. Yet his know-it-all, calm composure did little to ease her wariness of him. She narrowed her eyes.

“Why are you telling me this?” She asked, tone sharp.

“Haven’t you realized that The Monarch are not what they wish you to think they are?” He said. “The Queen is not to be trusted.”

Something twisted inside of her, she felt defensive, yet torn.

“The Queen and The Monarch aren’t perfect.” She agreed, her eyes saddened. “But do you truly believe that a life ruled by Nin-ja was any better?”

Her voice clipped and she shut her mouth abruptly. It was like a game of tolerance, and she refused to be the loser.

“A world where land is split into empires and there is constant strife and struggle for power. Children are born and bred to fight before they learn to stand.” Her breath faltered but she continued. “You may have been too young to have learned but even I know that Nin-ja fought at the will of their lords, stealing, sneaking, and killing. And among it all were the civilians who could do nothing but helplessly suffer the repercussions of the damage left.”

Her heart raced faster as her emotions began to grow haughtier. Still, she held them in and acted as though her heart was not quickening.

“It was tragedy what happened to the Nin-ja race and The Queen and The Monarch are to blame,” she continued. “But let me ask you, the struggles that befell the Nin-ja, are they any worse than the many innocent and helpless civilians that had to suffer for centuries before?”

At the end of her words she was met with an echoing silence. He didn’t respond. She began feeling a small swell of pride, she felt satisfaction that seemed at a loss for words. But just as she was about to recede back into her room, leaving him alone in the dimly lit tunnel, he suddenly turned to face her.

“If it gives you any consolidation,” he started, voice deep and slow, “that night that Konohagakure, the last of the Five Great Nin-ja villages, burned to the ground, among the many bodies fighting to keep it standing were Haruno-san’s parents.”

Temari stared at him, contempt in her eyes.

“I don’t see how that has-…”

“They were also civilians.”

And with those final words, he bowed his head and left Temari standing, glaring blankly into the dimly lit tunnel.


	3. Act I: Chapter Three

**Act I: Chapter Three**

The Empire of Sky had been the first to fall. Heaven itself could not withstand the forces that threatened to tear it apart. In control of the center valleys and springs, none of the lords had expected the rebellion to succeed in overturning the government. A body lay hanging from a banister, cold, limp and swinging, an eerie ghost, like the flag they hung on display as proof and validation of their power. Locked into the wind, patterns of swirls and lines woven in the shape of a butterfly. It flew.

They called themselves The Monarch and they were to be ruled by their queen – The Queen. Of evolution from weak to beauty, they said they stood for the civilians and sought to end wars. To bring an end to a society of Nin-ja. They claimed to hold a hope for a future, to be a voice for those who could only suffer in silence. Promises of the new; The Monarch declared themselves upon an entire nation.

The lords of other empires had been sorely mistaken to have taken such threats lightly.

 

* * *

 

 

Sasuke swiped a fist through the air. A knee lifted and attempted to snag him in the gut. Barely jumping out of range, the force of leaking Nin could be felt grazing his stomach. Sasuke was being careless with his Nin and Choji was benefiting from it.

The air hung heavy. Humid from sweat and torches that lined the room. Their foreheads and arms dripped, should and chest heaving, breathing rugged. There was a forcefulness with each punch or kick, a soreness and pain that ran through their muscles every time one of them attacked and the other worked to defend himself.

Choji was looking a bit chubbier than usual and Sasuke knew it wasn’t because of the breakfast mush they’d had that morning. Weighing three times himself at his thinnest, Sasuke was well aware that in hand to hand combat Choji outclassed him. Especially when Akamichi Nin was an automatic defense mechanism. Made to withstand blunt force and absorb the Nin that often leaked with each blow.

Dodging an uppercut, Sasuke bent back. He slid as Choji twisted his whole body to slam the inside of his left leg into Sasuke. Using the tension in his lower legs, Sasuke lunged forward. Choji swept out of the way, letting Sasuke fly past his left shoulder. Heading straight for the wall, Sasuke tensed his core and maneuvered his body so he would land feet first. Knees bent and shock distributing upward, Sasuke lunged once more.

Unable to move fast enough, Choji didn’t see as Sasuke wrapped an arm around his neck. It would have been over. Sasuke just needed to use what strength he had to pull Choji to the ground, top him, and quickly pull a kunai to his neck. All Sasuke had to do was control himself long enough to end the spar. Choji felt his body falling back, the impact of the ground knocked the wind out of him. It was almost over as Sasuke leaned to press a kunai to Choji’s neck. But he was careless.

Sasuke wanted to be sure of his victory. He wanted to assert his dominance, he wanted to make certain that the spar was his. With a forearm, Sasuke pushed it into Choji’s chest. His mistake.

Something bubbled at Choji’s core. Like a water to dam, the final push broke it. In a violent wave of energy Sasuke was thrown into the ceiling. Torches rattled and the fires extinguished. His back hit first and head snapped back into the rubble. The impact had him grunting with pain. The decent into the floor made him give a stifled cry as he felt a rib or two break at landing. The cavern shook as dust and rock began trickling onto their bodies.

“Sasuke…” Choji managed. Struggling to his feet, arms dangling limply and clothes hanging a bit looser, he looked like a deflated balloon.

There was an ache at his side as Sasuke attempted to pull himself to his knees. He heaved a breath at the pain in his chest and grit his teeth. Choji reached for him, hoping to help and bring Sasuke up on both feet.

“Are you all right?”

Sasuke swatted the hand away. Choji, expression of shock, left his hand hovering. Sasuke grudgingly looked up to Choji, his kunai having landed nowhere near either of them.

“The spar isn’t over,” Sasuke hissed.

And with a lasting effort, he lunged once more.

 

* * *

 

 

Shikamaru couldn’t be bothered to comment on the bandages that covered almost all of the Uchiha’s person. He could hardly be bothered to question why Choji was much hungrier than usual as he ate what was left in Shikamaru’s bowl. The fire in the pit flickered at the center of the room while the hollowed out cavern of the mountain was filled with at least a little more laughter than the first few months with the sand siblings.

The ticks that he had carved on the wall by the tatami he slept on told him that they were nearing half a year of hiding away. Nearly six months of complacent safety. It was the longest they had been in one place. Only hiding for three months; that had been the limit. Everyone had been tense at first, but somewhere between the fourth and fifth month, something had lifted. With how Sakura and Ino softly bickered, Ino throwing a comment to Choji who was happily eating the food that Shikamaru himself was too lazy to eat, Shino silently ignored Kiba and Akamaru’s playful annoyances, and Hinata – though still troubled by her sister’s weak condition – smiled and would blush every so often when Naruto happened to look her way. Even the sand siblings didn’t take much mind when Naruto had started to approach Gaara. Even Gaara, face still petrified in a look of perpetual horror, seemed strangely at ease with Naruto’s company. Shikamaru rationalized that it was due to having similar Nin.

Despite their circumstance, the atmosphere was beginning to feel more and more like what they had felt when the realities of Nin-ja life seemed like a far off world. To a time in the academy when life had been simpler, quieter, calmer… naïve. The terrors of The Monarch, The Queen, and stories of Black Guard Soldiers had been just as tangible as any other old wives’ tales to be sure their children did what they were told.

It was ironic, though. Sitting, hiding in the caves of a mountain while the world outside still thought them as monsters. Sitting, hiding in the caves of a mountain, trying to regain any semblance of normality; ending up only reverting to what they remembered as normal, being immature eight year olds. They were thirteen now. Had Konohagkure not fallen, they would have already been a year into their lives as true Nin-ja. Half of the friends they had grown up with would have already been flying through Konoha as ashes, incenses burning in the homes of their families who lost another son or daughter. They would have been split into three man cells with a more experienced instructor, organized and designed to specialize in specific jobs for the lord of their empire.

It truly was ironic, Shikamaru realized.

“Choji, that’s my food,” Ino chided. “Eat slower, quite being such a pig.”

“You’re one to talk Ino-pig,” Sakura teased.

“Shut up forehead!”

Choji paid no heed as he continued to put large spoon-fulls into his mouth. Shikamaru could only sigh, his inner thoughts wearing him out. Leaning back, he stared into the flickering fire. The flames grew, then receded, heat pressing onto his face. The fire that was so controlled and tame in the confines of the pit was incomparable to the scorching wild fires that burned the night all of them had truly lost their naiveté. No fire could compare to the fires that had set their homes ablaze. He sighed.

Finally lying flat on his back, Shikamaru closed his eyes at the sound of Ino chastising him for sleeping in the middle of the day. Sakura made an odd noise as Naruto came too close for her liking and Naruto let out a bout of laughter. He could hear Choji’s teeth chewing, which sounded extremely similar to the sound of Akamaru licking the rest of the contents of the bowl Kiba had given him. He did his best not to squirm when feeling one of Shino’s bugs crawl over his foot and instead imagined that Hinata was off on the side giggling when Kankuro yelled for everyone to quiet down, to which Temari then reprimanded her brother for not helping the situation. Gaara would just be sitting silently, watching as the entire scene unfolded. And the Uchiha…

“Where’re you going, Sasuke?” Naruto asked, face most likely calming down from laughing so hard.

Shikamaru peeked from under his lids and watched the Uchiha stalk back down a darkened hall.

 

* * *

 

 

“If the blizzards get too intense, come back immediately.”

Kankuro re-strapped the glove tightened around his wrist.

“No need to baby me, Temari,” he admonished. But her eyes were soft, almost exasperated. He sighed and relented. “I understand.”

“Bastard, are you even in any condition to go anywhere?”

Sasuke shot Naruto an annoyed look but, regardless, forcefully pulled on the canvas cloak. Though the bandages around his arms and legs were off and the bruises had healed, his cracked ribs sent a shot of pain with each movement he made.

“I’m fine.”

Not that he showed it.

They had noticed the food supplies had been running low for a couple of weeks. But the winter had brought on a sheet of ice that ran with the sand, creating unusually volatile weather conditions, making it difficult to go into town for supplies. Gaara had a hard enough time controlling the sand storms during favorable conditions, asking him to take control of the winter storm would have been too much. But their rations had gotten to a critical state where they could no longer postpone a trip. They took extra layers of canvas and thick goggles to shield their eyes. And while masks were usually donned to conceal identity, Kankoro pulled his extra tight to not let any shards of ice cut him.

The opening to the caves roared and echoed as the blizzard winds flew in. Covered in a sheet of slate white, they worried whether they’d make the trip or not. Sasuke lifted an arm and winced.

“Are you sure Sasuke?” Naruto questioned, his body shivering from the cold. “I can go instead.”

“I’m fine, dobe,” Sasuke hissed between clenched teeth. “Where’s Hyuuga?”

“Hinata…?” Naruto looked around. “I think she’s-…”

“S-sorry!”

A small voice appeared around the corner, Hinata struggled to adjust her cloak and gloves though her eyes were secured by the thick goggles. Sasuke made an apathetic grunt and turned away, Kankoro stood ahead at the edge of the cave. Temari handed a leather pouch into his hand.

“Don’t lose the stones,” she warned, “it’s all we have left.”

“How much can it get us?”

“If prices haven’t gone up again?” Temari thought. “Enough to last us another month.”

Kankoro’s grip on the bag tightened. Taking precautions he secure it around his waist. Giving his tether a few yanks, the pouch stayed in its place.

“Are we ready?” Sasuke huffed.

Hinata did one more readjustment of her goggles before stepping to be closer to the entrance. Kankoro took a look at Temari.

“We’ll be back soon,” he assured his sister.

Temari only sighed and nodded. With a flick of their wrist, they threw on their hoods and entered into the storm.

 

* * *

 

 

Ino wailed an ear biting scream.

“What’s wrong Ino?” Sakura rushed into the cavern Ino had been washing out the mush from her arm band.

Ino sat, splashing water from the basin onto her face.  Akamaru sat in the far corner with his head down and tail between his legs. Sakura raised a brow.

“What’s wrong?” Shikamaru asked.

Him, Kiba, Choji, and Naruto came flooding into the room, bodies tense and ready for battle. But upon seeing Ino and Akamaru in no real threat or danger, their expressions of worry quickly relaxed. Kiba walked in and put a hand on Akamaru’s head, eyes squinted and lips pulled back in an amused grin. The dog whimpered and nuzzled into Kiba’s neck.

“Kiba, tell your dog to keep him and his slobber off of me!” Ino stood and wiped the water from her face.

“That’s why you screamed?” Kiba laughed, scratching behind Akamaru’s ears. “I was half expecting The Queen from the way you screeched.”

“What do you mean?” Ino blurted. “Akamaru knows I hate it when he’s drooling around me. You’re connected by your Nin, can’t you control him to stop salivating everywhere?”

Kiba moved his lips and repeated Ino’s last words in a mocking tone, Ino sticking her tongue out in retaliation.

“That isn’t how it works and you know it.”

“Whatever.”

Shikamaru sighed and made a path for Ino to walk out. She had a small limp, her right ankle still trying to repair the damage. Sakura knew the nights that Ino had spent in their shared room doing jumping and crouching exercises, practicing kicks and lunges till she could only sleep from pure exhaustion. Sakura knew that all the add pressure was only keeping the injury from healing faster, but it made Ino feel better to wear herself thin.

“Hey Ino,” Kiba called.

Ino stopped.

“How about I cut you a deal?” He said, a playful lilt in his voice.

Her head only turned slightly.

“What deal?” It was in a kunochi’s training to play coy, and Ino had always been a master at it.

Kiba gave a smug smirk. 

“All of this because of Akamaru drooling?” Choji looked on in concern.

It hadn’t taken even a moment after Kiba had brought up the deal that he and Ino found themselves in their designated training room. _Crash_ as two blades met, a spark when the friction released. The two were pushed back, Kiba crouched with one hand braced on the ground. Ino took his moment of hesitation to do a run right at him, he braced for a direct attack to his chest, but instead was caught off his feet. She tightened her core and did a last minute change of trajectory and swiped him from underneath. The other four sat on the sidelines, having little else to do to keep themselves occupied.

“I mean,” Naruto gulped, “I know Ino really doesn’t like getting dirty but…”

Kiba quickly got back on his feet, just dodging a punch.  Shikamaru leaned back, crossing his arms and looking ready for a nap.

“You seem to be pretty calm about this,” Choji observed.

Shikamaru shrugged.

“They’re both just restless,” he said, “if it helps them settle down a bit, as long as they don’t kill each other I don’t really see a reason to worry.”

Kiba leapt over Ino’s head and swiped her off of her feet. She rolled over her shoulder and blocked a kick to her head.

“Do you really think Ino will let Akamaru chew up her arm bands?” Naruto asked.

“Who knows,” Shikamaru shrugged.

“I think she’d rather be caught by The Guard then let that happen.”

Sakura looked onto the fight and saw as the two swung punches at one another, Ino skid back after receiving a blow to her stomach. She bent over in pain but refused to completely kneel down. Kiba charged but just missed when Ino ducked through the space between his legs and kicked him from behind. Kiba tipped over and barely caught himself before rolling over his face. Naruto keeled over in laughter.

“Need someone to save your ass?” Naruto chortled.

Kiba ignored to comment and changed his trajectory. Naruto crossed his arms and made a taunting face, though no one but Sakura really noticed it. She rolled her eyes at the childish antics and tapped his shoulder. He turned to her in surprise.

“I’ll spar with you,” she said with a smile.

It took a moment for him to register her words, but once they did, he gave her one of his grins. It wasn’t the goofy one he usually wore when he played around and teased her, but it was one he gave everyone. The quirk in his lips, the bare of his teeth, and the sharpness in his eyes. It was there for a moment. Then it turned goofy in an instant.

“I don’t know, Sakura-chan,” he joked, “just because I think you’re pretty and everything, I won’t go easy on you.”

“Do you want to spar or not?” Her expression had fallen from its original kindness to one of hostility. Though she continued to smile, the twitch of her lip let him know she was only one word away from relentlessly pummeling him.

“Okay,” he said in a quiet squeak.

With a satisfied look, she stood up and called for Kiba and Ino to make space for their spar. The room was certainly large enough for at least two.

Shikamaru watched from the sides, his head resting into one palm. He let out a sigh. Just simply watching the two spars proceeding made him feel exhausted, but there wasn’t anything much better to do and while sleeping was an option, he had been having a difficult time dozing off the last few nights. When Sakura came crashing down just a few steps in front of them, he shifted so that his arms were crossed across his chest.

“A battle without using their Nin?”

Shino had appeared beside them, almost out of nowhere. As far as stealth went, he was the most elite out of all of them. Akamaru barked almost expectantly and placed his head on Shino’s lap. Shino had never been fond of the dog, but he wasn’t as advertent as Ino and allowed the contact.

“Aren’t you supposed to be watching Hyuuga-san’s sister?” Shikamaru asked.

“I’ve left a few of my Kikaichu with her, should there be a disturbance in her breathing or heart rates I will be informed.” Shino explained.

Choji shivered at the thought of miniature insects climbing and crawling on the floors and walls. There had been a time when all of them had experience the unpleasant itching of one skitter across their skin.

“Have you been leaving your bugs everywhere?” Shikamaru asked.

Kiba just picked himself off the ground, some dirt scraped against his cheek. He growled and wiped it clean before lunging forward again.

“I’ve lost some because of the cold.”

Shino’s voice was usually monotonous – almost mechanical. But his words often held some semblance of emotion when speaking of his insects. Shikamaru could almost feel the sadness in his droning baritone.

“We’ve been hiding here for six months.” Shikamaru stated, his back relaxing against the cavern wall. “And it’s been pretty restful.”

There was a clash of kunai, a spark of metal on metal.

“The sand siblings have had no plans to betray us,” Shino informed them, “if that is what has been worrying you. They are more loyal to their family then they are to The Queen and The Monarch.”

Shikamaru made a clicking sound with his tongue. Watching as Kiba knocked Ino off her feet and Sakura had successfully locked Naruto in a choke hold, his eyes narrowed. Their actions were ruff and almost animalistic. For Kiba it couldn’t be helped, his family’s training of rugged and ballistic nature often worked in tandem with their canine companion, but Sakura and Ino had a clumsy step while Naruto exerted too much force in extraneous motions.

“You aren’t much better,” Shino said, readjusting his glasses.

Shikamaru looked to his companion’s direction.

“What?”

“You were sitting and analyzing their movements as they sparred, and you judged that their movements are not refined enough.” Shino said, his hand readjusting the glasses on his face. “I’d say you are like a foil to Naruto,” Shino explained. “While he wastes his time and energy on the reel of his punches and kicks, you don’t put enough effort. Perhaps you believe that precision will win you the fight, and with the use of your Nin you would be correct.”

Shikamaru had always wondered what possessed Shino to make such assumptions about other’s thoughts and what in the world possessed him to act upon those assumptions. He always spoke with a patronizing calm that often rubbed others the wrong way, as Shikamaru could recall during their days in the academy. Shikamaru also wondered how the boy could make assumptions which such accuracy.

“Your point?” Shikamaru prodded.

“Say you were to fight someone like Uchiha-san, someone who could render your Nin a useless feat,” Shino continued, “then you find yourself in a predicament where your every moment continues to wear you down.”

“But precision is methodical and allows me to make the right hits with the right amount of force,” Shikamaru defended.

“But you are too methodical,” Shino interjected. “Sometimes impulse is good. You waste too much time thinking of the perfect strike that you waste just as much time as Naruto with his exaggerated motions. You save energy, but you do not have the level of endurance Akamichi-san gets from his Nin.”

Choji looked to Shino, then looked away, feeling bashful at the offhanded compliment.

Naruto was able to free himself from Sakura’s almost iron clad grip and flipped her over his back. She let go and stumbled on her landing. Ino screeched as she was pinned against the wall. She struggled against the weight of his body but managed to lift a leg over his shoulder, knocking the tips of her toes right into his chin. His head snapped back as he inhaled and let go, cursing her.

“I’m the same way,” Shino said. “It is the unfortunate side effect of having longer ranged Nin.”

Watching as Naruto attempted another attack, but only barely staggered out of Sakura’s gauche attempt of a tackle, and Ino and Kiba were both on their knees, panting; the spar was undoubtedly over. It ended in standstill as neither party could outmatch the other. Both looked worn, an unsatisfactory ending.

“Had this been the Chunnin exams, I would have predicted that Sakura and Kiba would come out the victor.” Shikamaru sighed. “Seems like we’ve all improved.”

All four collapsed on the floor, their breathing erratic as sweat drenched their skin.

“Well, four years running,” Choji added, “We’ve survived this long…”

“H-Hey!” Kiba sputtered through asymmetric breaths. “What are… what are you lazy asses talking…about?”

“About how you just got _your_ ass handed to you by Ino,” Naruto chuckled, wheezed a breath, and then chuckled again.

Kiba growled.

“Shut up, Naruto,” Sakura huffed. She wiped a pool of sweat from her brow.

“We were just discussing how we have all improved since our times in the academy,” Shino said, monotonous. “And Akamichi-san made the observation that we had all survived four years running from The Guard, so our improvement was inevitable.”

Shino had been careless with his choice of words and the cavern grew quiet, save for the sounds of heavy breaths that echoed along the walls. Though they hadn’t won their respective spars, their progress was hard to deny and only served as a bitter-sweet reminder that they were the ones who had survived.

“Remember those stupid questionnaire things the academy would have us fill out every year?” Naruto asked.

“You mean those stupid things that asked us stuff like: ‘What is strength?’ and ‘What is teamwork?’ and all that shit?” Kiba lifted an arm and let Akamaru slip underneath.

“Yeah,” Naruto heaved. “I remembered whenever I got mine back, I would get so many ‘x’s I think all I could see for a week was a red cross.”

Kiba snorted.

“Yeah, I think I remember mine like that too…”

“I mostly got circles,” Sakura said proudly.

“No one cares, forehead,” Ino wheezed.

“Jealous, Ino-pig?”

“Not really since I got them all right, too,” Ino playfully sneered.

Shikamaru slid onto the floor to join everyone else, leaving Shino and Choji to be left the only ones sitting upright.

“They were just logistical tests,” Shikamaru said, “Everything we ever did in that damn place was just some test or another. It only gave the counsel and the Lord a good sense of who would survive in the field, nothing was certain.”

“Nara-san is correct,” Shino spoke up, “We had been given many tests to help us progress as Nin-ja and to be sure that it ensured our greatest chances of survival.”

“But not all of them were a pain to do,” Ino shifted and pulled herself up against the wall. “I mean, the paper folding and morning exercises were always fun.”

“Only because you were good at them,” Sakura commented.

“Uchiha always cheated,” Kiba laughed.

“Really?” Sakura looked over to Kiba.

Kiba nodded.

“What does it matter?” Naruto shrugged. “I mean, there weren’t any rules against cheating, just don’t get caught.”

“Isn’t that the same thing?” Choji asked.

“No,” Shino cut in. “Even the rules were a test: do not die and do not be caught cheating.”

Choji had already known it, he just hadn’t wanted to believe it.

“So,” Kiba grinned, “does that mean I technically won against Uchiha?”

“Depends if he had intended for you to see or not,” Shino said coolly.

Kiba made a face, but his attention moved to Akamaru who had his head up and alert. Ears erect and face serious, the two seemed to exchange a mental dialogue. The others looked on in worry at their sudden change in expression.

“What is it…?”

There was a crash as something down one of the tunnels was knocked over. If they hadn’t much energy to move before, the fatigue was easily forgotten as all seven of them were quick to jump on their feet. There was a high pitched scream.

“That sounds like Hinata,” Kiba said frantic.

Ino and Sakura only had to share one look at each other before they sprinted towards the direction of the sound. There was another crash and a scream. They turned and followed the echoes down another hall. Lead to the tunnel that opened to the blizzardy storm outside, they found Hinata pulling at Kankoro’s arms, begging him to cease. On the floor in front of him was a crumpled Sasuke, his arms and legs immobile, but tomoe spinning in a pool of red. Sasuke coughed when Kankoro kicked him in the stomach.

“What the fuck were you thinking?” Kankoro screamed.

“S-stop!” Hinata pleaded, arms gripping tightly at Kankoro’s shoulder.

Kankoro forced her off of him, she stumbled back into the wall behind them. It didn’t take long for the others to react. Kiba and Akamaru sprung forward and knocked Kankoro backwards before he could land another blow on Sasuke. He stumbled and was caught off guard by the sudden attack at both his sides dealt by both Ino and Naruto. He slammed into the wall, the shock hitting him hard when his body was suddenly held there by a crushing force at his arms. Sakura held him with an inhuman strength and fury in her eyes.

He retracted to kick her, but his legs were pinned by a chilling restraint. Shikamaru stood just a few steps away with his shadow stretched out from beneath him. Kankoro snarled and struggled from under his holdings. Sakura’s grip only grew tighter.

“Use of Nin requires control,” Sakura said under her breath.

“Let go of me!” He shouted.

“I suggest you don’t do anything rash,” Shino said.

At his side, he saw a blur, then Choji appear with a kunai pressed to his throat. Kankoro growled.

“Like Haruno-san has said,” Shino began calmly. “The use of Nin requires a certain amount of control. Usually, control of our Nin is easy. But when we are tired, or irritated, or distracted our control can sometimes… _waver_. Haruno-san just came from a spar and is rather tired and – by the look of it – quite irritated.”

Sakura’s grip on Kankoro’s arms tightened as if to illustrate the point. Kankoro did not avert his glare.

“So I do recommend you begin explaining in the least impetuous way possible.” Shino continued. From beneath his sleeves came a group of bugs that begun to buzz and swarm around Kankoro’s head. “Give us one good reason why we shouldn’t kill you here.”

Kankoro eyed the swarm around him. The bugs buzzed so close to his ears it sent an involuntary shiver down his spine, which only made him all the more aware of the cold shadow behind him. The Nin-ja that were crouched in ready, attack stances waited patiently for his next move. Most of their Nin abilities on display, he held back a defying scoff.

“Nin-ja really are monsters,” He seethed.

Their eyes narrowed.

“You aren’t really in any position to test our patience,” Shikamaru reminded him. “Now start talking.”

The bugs inched closer, Sakura’s hands tightened, and Choji pressed the kunai harder against his throat. Akamaru growled and Kiba snarled in response. Naruto and Ino had their faces skewed, fist ready for attack. The storm and blizzard continued to rage and roar, echoing and whirring across dimly lit cavern walls, the feeling in Kankoro’s arms and legs were beginning to dwindle as he refused to show any signs of relent or fear.

“What is going on here?” Temari’s voice cried in fury over the violent storm.   

Her eyes immediately widened at finding Kankoro pinned at the wall by Sakura, a swarm of bugs surrounding intimidatingly close to his head. All the other Nin-ja children waiting on the sides with offensive positions – ready to attack at any given moment.

“What the _fuck_ are you doing to my brother you bastar-…?”

“He attacked us first,” Shikamaru interrupted.

She paused. Looking around the room, she found Sasuke curled limp on the ground. His chest still rose at every breath but an eye was swollen shut and blood dripped from a split lip. Hinata stood cowering beside him, a finger pressed to her mouth. Temari’s eyes narrowed.

“What the hell is going on here?”

“Ask your goddamn brother,” Kiba growled. Akamaru bared his teeth.

Temari shifted her attention to Kankoro against the wall.

He was struggling, but Sakura had him firmly pressed to the cavern’s wall. 

“This bastard lost the stones I gave him and attacked patrolling Blue Guard soldiers!” Kankoro yelled.

Everyone froze.

“You assholes of Nin-ja are so blinded by your loyalty for each other that you’re restraining me?” Kankoro struggled.

Sakura, shocked at his words did not continue to use her Nin against him. Kankoro broke free from the restraints, but dare not move forward into the swarm that still circled his head. He sneered.

“That bastard is the one who’s going to get us fucking killed!”

And the attention was thrust upon Sasuke who managed to turn himself onto his back. Hinata tried to help prop him up against the wall but he snubbed her attempt with a turn of his body. A pain shot in his broken ribs.

“Care to explain yourself Uchiha?” Shikamaru grit his teeth.

The moment remained still. Sasuke spit out a piece of skin he had bit off his cheek when receiving the blows from Kankoro. The spit didn’t make it from his face and just sat on the side of his chin. He looked like a mess, but still no one said a thing. His hands curled and he let out a maniacal laugh. The cackles echoed against the walls and every guff he spewed ached in the bones of his chest. Everyone could only stare, their confused looks bordered on irritation.

Shikamaru had long since receded his shadow and Kankoro’s arms were free from the wall. The swarm disappeared and no one did a thing as Kankoro stalked up to Sasuke and lifted him by the collar of his cloak. He shoved him against the wall of the cave.

“What the hell do you think is so funny?” Kankoro seethed.

Sasuke had stopped his laughing, but an eerie smile still remained on his face. He met Kankoro’s forceful gaze with an equal amount of contempt, breaking contact to lazily lull his attention to everyone else surrounding them.

Kankoro’s grip only grew tighter, his patience waning.

“Well…?”

Sasuke still did not answer him and his eyes continued to roam across the faces of the other Nin-ja. Kankoro grit his teeth and made a low growl.

“Are you going to say anything bastard?” Kankoro yelled with furry and slammed Sasuke against the wall once more. An arm raised as a fist above his head, tight and threatening. “Answer me!”

The fist came down and knocked Sasuke in the jaw. He coughed but was only able to catch a single inhale before Kankoro slammed him against the cavern wall. The others stiffened and tensed their muscles, ready to come back into action.

“You think- you’re so- invincible- you put- everyone- in- danger-!” Kankoro’s words came out in grunts as he began hitting Sasuke between syllables. “You- bastard!”

“Stop it!”

Kankoro released another furious grunt, but this time out of a sharp pain that entered both his shoulders. Hinata stood behind him, her fingers out and pressed against his arm. The bulges at the sides of her eyes receded as she took a step back, a finger to her lip. Naruto went to catch Sasuke as he fell to the floor.

“Bitch…” Kankoro breathed. His arms lay limply at his sides.

“S-stop it… please…” Hinata was trembling.

The room grew silent once more. A heavy ambience in the flicker of the torch lights. Temari’s patience snapped.

“Someone start explaining, now.” Her words were icy and hard.

Attention was snapped back to Sasuke was on his knees with a hand slowly coming to rub the sides of his jaw as he let out an audible snort. Shikamaru lifted his chin.

“If there’s something you’d like to say, Uchiha,” he said slowly, “I suggest you do it soon.”

From his position, his eyes raised. Though one remained swollen shut, the other pierced like a grazing kunai. It stung. He made his gaze follow along the line of the others that stood surrounding him.

“Sasuke…” Naruto’s voice was hoarse.

Sasuke looked away and had his bangs cover the unsightliness of his face. They assumed he had nothing to say and relaxed their stance, disappointment only growing. Naruto slung an arm over his shoulder and lifted Sasuke to his feet, though all they could do was drag along the floor. The rest held their limbs close to their bodies, stepping out of the way. But as everyone turned to leave and Temari went to pick Kankoro off the ground, Sasuke spoke. Though low and uncommanding, his words – dull, like an old, unused weapon – were clearly heard.

“You’re all idiots.”

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like I should take this time to say that this story is not Naruto, though it barrows a lot of themes and ideas from the series so many aspects are different. For one, ninja (忍著) is split into Nin (忍), meaning resilience, and ja (著), meaning person or being. So the rookie 9 are literally calling themselves "resilient people" by saying they are Nin-ja and that others are "non-resilient" when they are being called non-Nin. I think this is the only thing that really needs to be explained, everything else should be better introduced with time.
> 
> I have several chapters already fully written, but this is sort of a beta testing for me since a) this is my first time using AO3 and b) I would like to see if it is worth continuing, since the overall story is rather long. Please support and don't forget to comment!


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